Dentists recommend using dental floss after each meal, or at least daily, to clean between teeth to fight placque buildup and to stimulate the growth of strong and healthy gums. Placque is a leading cause of tooth decay, gum disease and bad breath. Food particles frequently become lodged between the teeth, and placque builds up between the teeth in regions where a toothbrush cannot reach. This buildup between the teeth increases the danger of infection of the gums and tooth decay.
Typically, dental floss is wrapped around a finger on each hand, with the person then sticking his or her fingers in the mouth to effect the flossing. Many persons, however, dislike flossing their teeth in this manner.
To overcome the disadvantages of wrapping floss around the fingers to accomplish flossing of teeth, various flossing tools have been developed. One such tool is a disposable handle with a pair of spaced legs on one end forming a U-shaped extension. In this tool, a short strip of floss is molded into the ends of the two legs across the space forming the U-shaped end. The floss in this tool is not removable; so that if it should become caught between the teeth, it is necessary to break it in order to remove the floss and tool. This can be a significant disadvantage, since the floss cannot simply be pulled through the space between the teeth if it should become caught. In addition, even if the floss is under tension when it is molded between the legs of the tool, it tends to stretch and deform in use, and quickly loses tension. Since the floss itself is molded into the ends of the legs of the U-shaped end, there is no way to re-tension the floss extending across the gap between the legs.
Other flossing tools have been developed, which also employ a pair of legs in a U-shaped or wishbone-shaped configuration across which dental floss is stretched. In these tools, floss is not embedded in the plastic legs; but a provision is made for winding a length of floss around an anchor pin or holder, and then extending it through grooves across the opening between the legs and back around the holder. The initial tension can be adjusted by the person applying the floss to the holder. If the floss should become stuck between the teeth, it can be released from the anchor pin and pulled through the teeth; so that such tools are not subject to the disadvantages noted above for tools where the ends of the floss are permanently molded into the legs across the space between the two legs. This tool, however, also is subject to the same disadvantage of the previous tool inasmuch as when the floss is placed under stress, it tends to stretch and become loose and baggy. The floss then must be unwound from the anchor post, pulled tight and re-positioned for further use. This is inconvenient. Frequently, users of such tools find that it is easier simply to wrap the floss around the fingers of two different hands in the conventional manner and floss without the tool.
It is desirable to provide a dental floss tool which is inexpensive, easy to use and which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art noted above.